Auckland is home to roughly 25% of New Zealand’s population.  Many corporations have offices here, like Google, Citi, Deloitte, AIG, and SAP.  Thus, Auckland accounts for about a third of New Zealand’s total GDP.  In addition to business services, Auckland has a incredibly busy port.  The city has harbors on two major bodies of water, the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Tasman Sea to the west, which is very unique.  Also, the land surrounding Auckland is quite fertile and is used for farming.  There is a small film and television industry as well.  Thus a lot’s happening here, and has been for a long while.  The Maori inhabited these parts before Europeans, at one point in numbers as high as 20,000.  

Auckland used to be the capital until most of the government moved in 1865 and 1866 to Wellington.  By 1900 Auckland was the biggest city in the country.  Today 1.377 million people call it home. 

The entire metropolitan area sits on a volcanic field, aptly named The Auckland Volcanic Field, which currently is dormant.  This field has produced about a hundred eruptions from fifty distinct volcanoes in the last 90,000 years.  The eruptions typically last from days to weeks, and then (usually) never erupt again.  In the 1800s, the Maori noticed an island just popped out of the harbor, so I question how dormant this area really is.  The magma here, however, does not seem to be that sticky, explosive kind like Lake Taupo.  Still, any volcano erupting in such an urban setting would be … tricky … to manage.  

Wellington felt a lot like D.C., a government town with a limited economy.   Auckland feels more like a medium sized U.S. city, with multiple economies operating on top one another.  There is a life and vibrancy here not felt in Wellington.  A Branson, Missouri … if you will.  

We’ve had steady rain since our arrival.  The climate here is similar to Queenstown, i.e., Oceanic.  It rarely gets hotter than 90 and colder than 30 degrees Fahrenheit.  Snow is very uncommon, though rain and humidity are.  It’s also quite windy, and everyone seems to own a sail boat.  Which I guess explains Auckland’s nickname, The City of Sails.  The Maori called this place Tamaki Makau Rau, or “Isthmus of one thousand lovers.”  There is a deep maritime history here, no doubt related to the climate. 

Despite the high cost of living and a housing shortage, on the Mercer Quality of Living Survey from 2016 Auckland rated 3rd, which means it’s one of the most livable cities in the world. 

We headed to the aquarium in the morning.  A shark bus picked us up.  Kelly Tarlton built this place, which used to be a sewer, basically by himself.  He also invented the method of shaping acrylic to create a tunnel through the tanks, so fish would swim above and to the side of you while you walked through the habitat.   

Sadly, the guy died seven weeks after it opened.  He apparently had an undiagnosed heart condition, and the damn thing just gave out in his sleep.  Doctors suspected all the diving and construction had done it.   

This aquarium is now owned by a conglomerate, Merlin Entertainment Group.  They own all the Legolands and all the Madam Tussauds.  Also, oddly enough, the various Eyes, like the London Eye, the Orlando Eye, etc.   I didn’t know Orlando had an Eye. 

I enjoyed seeing the various sea creatures, but with the crush of children and herding parents I did wonder which of us was in captivity.   Certainly the animals seemed to have more space.  The tight quarters and density of people led to a breakdown of social order in the queue.  Tempers were short.  The wanted to take our picture (like all these venues do) and I was like, “Piss off.”  

RBD and I had a really great time.  We just sat on the floor and watched the fish and turtles swim back and forth.  The rock octopus, named Rocky, and I shared a moment while staring at each other.  Such interesting creatures.  Finally got to see a Seahorse in real life.  And the sharks and sting-rays are just such beautiful, graceful creatures.  It was loads of fun, a must do if in this part of the world.  

With rain still falling down in sheets, we hopped a bus to the Maritime Museum.  You know all RBD’s fondness for boats.  There were many for her to drool over.  

Lot of really interesting stuff on how early Polynesians spread through the region, eventually ending their expansion in Hawaii and Easter Island.  We also learned how these settlers navigated through open ocean to find land.  I am continually amazed how smart and brave these early people were and how little credit we give them today.  Which one of us would navigate the high seas without GPS or radar?  Yet without the toys they knew where they were going and how to get there.  

We depart for home in two days.  I seriously hope the pilot uses all the toys available, however, to get us there. 

The shooting conditions were quite challenging.  The light was low, the fish move fast, lots of people.  Below is a Blow Fish I named Blowy.  Dude never broke eye contact, clearly having read Tony Robbins latest book.

I’m a big fan of coral.  One day I would like to own a reef tank.